Grand Theft Auto 3 Goes on Sale for $3, Adds Galaxy Nexus Support

The fine folks at Rockstar are giving us a nice gift for the holidays. While this gift doesn’t come free it does come at a reduced price that we absolutely can’t be mad at. It’s the Android version of Grand Theft Auto 3, of course, and it can be had for just $10 until the 29th. The classic sandbox crime series got its 3D start with this game on the Playstation.

Fast forward to now and you can blow cars up and extort people for money on your smartphone. And for those on a Galaxy Nexus, you’ll finally be able to enjoy the game on the beautiful 4.65 inch HD display as they’ve added support for the phone with this update. Go ahead and grab the game from the Android Market here before Claude shows up at your doorstep. [via Droid-Life]

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German Court Leans in Favor of Samsung in Case of Galaxy Tab 10.1N

Apple’s case against the revised Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1N will likely not hold up, the judge reviewing the case has stated. In Judge Johanna Brueckner-Hofmann’s opinion, changes made to the Galaxy Tab design appear sufficient to comply with a court order banning the sale of the original device. The statement is not a final ruling, though a verdict is expected to be handed down shortly.

Judge Brueckner-Hofmann held trial in her Dusseldorf court in September, hearing Apple’s case that Samsung had copied their iPad design when creating the Galaxy Tab 10.1. An initial injunction banning the sale of the tablet was upheld, and Samsung released the Galaxy Tab 10.1N — a modified version of the tablet taking the court’s ruling into consideration — to avoid future legal troubles. Apple disagreed that the Galaxy Tab 10.N met the requirements laid out by the court and quickly filed a new suit. With these latest developments, it appears Samsung will soon be able to return to business as usual in Germany.
[via BGR]

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Samsung Announces Dual-SIM Galaxy Y Duos and Galaxy Y Pro Duos

Take the Samsung Galaxy Y and Galaxy Y Pro, slap on dual-SIM support, and you have the pair of handsets announced by the Korean manufacturer today. Just with the original lineup of Galaxy Y phones, the new handsets feature 830MHz processors, 3MP rear cameras, and VGA front-facing cameras. The Galaxy Y Pro Duos gets a 2.6-inch touchscreen with a QWERTY keyboard found below, a BlackBerry-esque staple of most handsets with the ‘pro’ label. The Galaxy Y Duos foregoes the keyboard for a 3.14-inch display.

Folks in Europe, Asia, South America, and Africa can expect to see the two new offerings in January, though pricing has not yet been announced. We fully expect the Galaxy Y Duos and Galaxy Y Pro Duos to make an appearance at CES in Las Vegas.
[press release]

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Improve your Android device’s display resolution

Ever wondered how you wished your Android-powered smartphone would have a higher pixel count for its display? Well, those who own a rooted Android smartphone, you can “force” the resolution of your handset’s display to be different compared to what it came with, thanks to an app known as LCD Resolution. Bear in mind that you are unable to cram in more pixels than the original count, as that would be impossible, but you can improve the resolution with this particular program. For best results, a high resolution display Android device would work best, such as the recently announced Samsung Galaxy Note, the HTC Rezound, or the Samsung Galaxy Nexus. I would presume that folks who mirror video from their smartphone to a HDTV will find this useful.

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MIUI on Galaxy Nexus LTE currently in the works, almost fully functional

Well that was quick. Developer DroidVicious over at RootzWiki has almost ported his ViciousMIUI ROM over from the Thunderbolt to the Galaxy Nexus LTE. Before even a day had passed, he had calls, call audio, and data all working perfectly. The only feature currently broken and acting buggy is WiFI and the softkeys. Though we’ll have to wait for a WiFi fix from him directly, we can mend the softkey problem by downloading Soft Keys from the Android Market.

Over on the thread, there is also a second flashable .ZIP that will temporarily fix the softkey issue – so take your pick. I’ll have some screenshots of the ROM our community Forums as soon as WiFi is fixed later tonight. My Galaxy Nexus has been plagued with some pretty significant signal issues, regardless of what Verizon previously stated. Also, do note that DroidVicious used AOSP 4.0.3 as the base for this port, so it will likely be up to date as soon as those running stock ROMs are pushed 4.0.3 officially.
Users are reporting it working great, but with a very noticeable battery drain. To be honest, my Galaxy Nexus drains quickly anyways so I will probably not notice the difference. Using MIUI on my previous devices had been an excellent experience, and paired with the Galaxy Nexus I could’t imagine it getting any better. Who knows, maybe upgrading to the 4.0.3 based AOSP ROM will cure the signal issues too.
[via RootzWiki]

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Samsung designers reveal the inspiration behind the Galaxy Nexus

There’s at least one thing that hardware manufacturers are inspired by: making so much money that they have to sell more phones to make room in the warehouse for a fleet of Bentleys. But the Galaxy Nexus enjoys a design that’s fairly unique, between its curved construction and its deliberately spartan layout. So what was the inspiration behind the shape? If you said “taking a Galaxy S II and bending it like a Pringles chip,” you’d only be half right: according to the company design blog, the curved shape is meant to recall the outline of a floating magnolia flower petal.

Designers TaeJoong Kim and GiYoung Lee extrapolated on the process that went into the hardware design of the Galaxy Nexus. “All the design projects I’m working on take cues from nature,” says Kim. Previous projects in the Galaxy line were designed to look like sports cars, but the subtle curves and flowing lines of the Nexus is meant to imply a more organic origin. The emphasized curve is meant for comfort both when speaking on the phone and “putting the phone in the back pocket of skintight jeans.”

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Android 4.0.3 radios for the Galaxy Nexus leaked

While it appears in the official capacity, the Android 4.0.3 update for the Galaxy Nexus and Nexus S have been delayed, the good news for Galaxy Nexus owners is that leaked 4.0.3 radios for your device has been leaked, and based on reports from users across various forums, the leaked radios for the CDMA and 4G LTE Galaxy Nexus have improved signal reception.
Users have reported that the phone now locks onto a data signal faster and tends to keep it longer, along with smoother handoffs between 4G and 3G connections. Of course this leaked radio will require an unlocked phone with custom recovery, so proceed at your own risk as it seems that according to Michael Crider of Android Community, the leaked radio has “broken” his wireless tethering functionality.
We can’t be sure if this has happened to anyone else yet, but if you can’t wait for the official update, you can find the download link and instructions along with various user feedback on the XDA forums.

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Nexus S Android 4.0.3 update roll-out paused to gather feedback

Google has apparently stopped rolling-out Nexus S ICS update in some regions for the time being. This step is said to be normal procedure and company does it every time it rolls out an OTA to monitor the reaction from users with already updated smartphones.
So, if you have not got the OTA notification till now, don’t worry it will be available on your phone within this month, or if you got the notification some time back but you declined and now you are not able to get it again, same case – you will get it soon.
According to Google’s Paul Wilcox:

If you received an update notification a little while ago but the update isn’t currently available for your phone, this is likely the result of Google pausing the update in your area while we monitor feedback. The Android 4.0 update is continuing to roll out around the world so your phone will receive another update notification when it’s available again in your region.

PS: You can always install it manually using the guide given here.

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Root users: install Google Car Home on your Galaxy Nexus

One thing that surprised me when looking through my Galaxy Nexus apps wasn’t the presence of Verizon’s bloatware, it was thew absence of something that’s become a standard on Android phones: Google Car Home. It’s the app that launched when you slide a phone into a car dock, featuring big, easily pressed buttons to help you stay focused on the road. When I looked for it in the Android Market, there was no sign, and navigating via the web version revealed that Google Car Home isn’t yet compatible with either the Galaxy Nexus, Ice Cream Sandwich, or both.


Of course, being an obsessive Android tinkerer I couldn’t simply let things lie. So I downloaded the latest version of Google Car Home on my DROID X, then copied the APK file over to my SD card, and eventually to my computer. Then I copied the APK over to the MTP root folder of my Galaxy Nexus. You can see where this is going. When I tried to install the APK via the Root Explorer file manager, it popped out an error message. So as a last ditch attempt, I activated root permissions and copied the APK file straight into my /system/app folder. Eureka! The app showed up in my drawer immediately, and Google Car Home works just fine, as far as I can tell.

Here’s the Google Car Home APK if you want to skip the roundabout or don’t have a spare Android phone. Just copy it into your /system/app/ folder using a root file explorer. To use the easy method you need to be rooted, but those with stock Ice Cream Sandwich will have to use ADB to manually move the file from your computer into the correct folder. Here’s a guide if you’re new to ADB.

All this is a little disheartening for Verizon Galaxy Nexus users, since the official Samsung car dock for the LTE version doesn’t use the three electrical contacts to automatically enter car mode like the GSM dock does. But the Google Car Home app is still much safer and easier to operate while driving, and features quick links to hands-free voice activation and maps. If you’ve got a Bluetooth-enabled car stereo, you can set Car Home to launch as soon as it makes the Bluetooth connection. And if you’re looking for a good, cheap universal car dock, I’ve had great results with the SGP Kuel S20.
Disclaimer: this app, and the process for installing it, are offered on an as-is basis. Android Community is not responsible if you use it to play Angry Birds in the middle of the highway and end up with some angry people… or worse.

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Galaxy Nexus gaming performance: ShadowGun and Riptide GP

Wondering how the Verizon Galaxy Nexus will handle all the high-end games that are coming out and taking advantage of super-powered Android hardware? Well wonder no more. Chris Burns over at SlashGear took his shiny new Nexus on a gaming bender, trying out two high-profile 3D games that are quickly becoming the standard for Android graphics: third-person shooter ShadowGun and jet ski racer Riptide GP.

The results are impressive, to say the least. Despite the Galaxy Nexus’ 720p resolution, both games run quickly and smoothly at the highest settings. On ShadowGun you can notice minimal slowdown during screen-filling effects, but that’s about it. When playing Riptide, the racing is incredibly smooth and fluid even with the multiple water effects at play. Notice that in both titles, the virtual buttons on the Galaxy Nexus don’t disappear like they do with active videos – this may be a limitation of the APIs in question, or it could be adressed by future releases of either game.
Check out the videos below:








Of course, neither game looks as good as it does on the Asus Eee Pad Transformer Prime, but that’s to be expected. The quad-core Nvidia Tegra 3 processor combines with a slightly lower system load for Honeycomb as opposed to Ice Cream Sandwich, and Riptide GP has a special version designed specifically to take advantage of the hardware. But there’s no doubt about it: the Galaxy Nexus is one of the best Android smartphones out there for gaming, if not the best at the moment. We’ll see how long it can keep its crown when Tegra 3 smartphones from HTC and others start arriving in Q1 of 2012.

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Google Said to be Suspending Nexus S ICS Update Due to High CPU Usage and Battery Life Bug

Google began rolling out the Nexus S ICS update in several regions a short time ago but it seems they’ve already had to suspend the upgrade for an issue that is affecting battery life.
Alongside abnormal battery drain users are seeing high spikes of CPU usage, two things that could be directly related. If you’ve gotten a notification that the upgrade was available but you have since been unable to apply it, don’t worry – you’re not crazy.
Now is as good a time as any to mention that Galaxy Nexus users have also been experiencing less-than-normal battery drainage for quite some time. Many believe it to be a kernel driver issue and is causing the OS to keep the device awake (this doesn’t necessarily mean the screen has to be on) which causes excessive battery drain.
I personally have been seeing half the awake time as overall up time (for instance, 4 hours on battery gives me 2 hours of awake time even if I’m not using the device more than 10 minutes throughout that period) on my Galaxy Nexus. Compared to other devices this most certainly is an anomaly. We’re not sure what’s going on but Google is apparently aware and working on a fix.
For the time being, if any of you have a Nexus S receiving the official update would you please be kind enough to go into the Battery Usage menu and letting us know what your Android OS usage is showing after using it for some time? It would go a long way toward figuring out if this is an Ice Cream Sandwich issue in general or if the two devices are unrelated. [Google Code (Galaxy Nexus), Google Support, XDA via Droid Dog]

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Samsung offering 16 premium games for free to select Galaxy smartphone users

Samsung is offering 16 Android games free of cost to select Galaxy smartphone users via its App store – Samsung Apps. The supported devices include Samsung Galaxy S II, Galaxy Note, Galaxy Ace, Galaxy S, SLCD, Galaxy R, and Galaxy s WiFi 5.0.
Each of these devices support different games according to their hardware, while S2 supports 11 games, Ace only supports one of them. You can check out the full list here and even download them.
Some of the games on offer for free:

• Riptide GP HD
• Air Attack HD
• European War
• Roboto

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Samsung confirms Ice Cream Sandwich updates coming to Galaxy devices in Q1 2012

Despite the fact that its regional offices had confirmed which of its handsets and tablets would receive Ice Cream Sandwich updates, Samsung has today made a public announcement confirming that the Galaxy S II, Galaxy Note and Galaxy Tab models will receive Android 4.0 updates.
Both the Galaxy S II and Galaxy Note will receive Ice Cream Sandwich updates in the first quarter of 2012, with the Galaxy R and various Galaxy Tab following soon after.
Samsung lists the following devices will be eligible for an upgrade to Ice Cream Sandwich:

The ICS-upgradable devices are the GALAXY S II, GALAXY S II LTE, GALAXY Note, GALAXY R, GALAXY Tab 10.1, GALAXY Tab 8.9, GALAXY Tab 7.7, and GALAXY Tab 7.0 Plus.

As with many of the other major Android vendors, Samsung has said that it will make individual announcements for each of its other Android smartphones, but notes it will be “according to market situation and carrier’s requirements”.
In October, the update roster was seemingly confirmed by Samsung Italy, which said not only would the Galaxy S II and Galaxy Note get the update, owners of the Galaxy Tab 10.1, Galaxy Tab 8.9, Galaxy Tab 7.7 and Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus would also see the software release come to their tablet device.
Alpha builds of the Android 4.0 update for the Samsung Galaxy S II have already begun to leak but are currently very buggy, so it is not recommended you update your device until Samsung officially launches its updates at the beginning of next year.

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Verizon Galaxy Nexus Vehicle Dock Lacks 3-Pin Connector – What Gives?

If you were looking to cruise in style and outfit you new brand new Verizon Galaxy Nexus with the official Samsung vehicle dock, you may want to hold that thought. Apparently, the American/Verizon version of the car dock (pictured above) is without the three-pin connectors you see in the UK/GSM version of the dock (pictured below).

Not sure exactly what’s up but if you want the higher quality — and better featured vehicle dock — from the UK, you’re going to have to pay a higher premium, along the lines of £50. If unplugging and replugging your phone isn’t too troublesome for you, the Verizon version of the car dock can be had for $40. Which version will all you “elite” Galaxy Nexus owners out there be purchasing? (Yes, I’m still bitter from a complete lack of Gnex on Sprint). From the sound of it, Verizon GNex users don’t sound too happy with the version of their car dock.
[Amazon (GSM) | Verizon Wireless | Via Engadget]

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First the court, now Samsung beating Apple in Australia’s mobile market

Fresh from beating Apple in the court room in Australia — after the ban on its Galaxy Tab was overturned earlier this month — Samsung has leapfrogged its rival to take the top spot in the country’s smartphone market, according to new data released by ABI Research today.
The Korean manufacturer now holds 49 percent of the smartphone market in Australia and 28.5 percent in New Zealand, which puts it ahead of rival Apple which holds 36 percent and 13 percent respectively. In New Zealand, Apple has even slipped into third place with Chinese manufacturer Huawei rising to 20 percent of the country’s smartphone market.
According to IDC, the popularity of the Samsung Galaxy range is responsible for the firm’s growth, while a rise in the availability of mid- and low- range Android devices is beginning to show, with Apple’s market share watered down as a result.
IDC analyst Yee-Kuan Lau explains in more detail:

There is a gradual shift in demand by cost-conscious consumers to low-cost Android smartphones from feature phones across [Australia and New Zealand], as more low cost smartphones are becoming available in the market.
In Australia for example, the shift in demand from feature phones has helped boost sales in the sub-US$150 segment with low-cost Android smartphones such as Huawei U8180 Ideos X1, especially when 90% of feature phones were priced below US$150.

The firm expects that Android will continue to pip Apple in Australia, whilst it foresees that the Google owned operating system will push out a strong lead in New Zealand too.
Australia and New Zealand are frequently analysed side-by-side, however their levels of smartphone usage vary considerably. Smartphones account for 65 percent of all mobile devices in Australia — making it one of the most developed markets on the planet — however, that figure drops down to 43 percent for its Antipodean neighbour.
Further proof that New Zealand’s market is a little further behind on the development curve is shown by the sheer growth of its mobile space. The industry posted 55 percent year on year growth in sales, that’s compared to a 17 percent shrinkage in handset shipments in Australia.
Samsung was recently strongly linked with overthrowing Nokia at the top of India’s smartphone rankings. In October, the firm posted its best ever year of sales, which were up by 300 percent, albeit with lower profits.

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Android Revolution HD ROM 2.2.1 on the Verizon Galaxy Nexus

Though still a work in progress, mike1986 has brought Samsung Galaxy Nexus (GSM/LTE) owners his popular Android Revolution HD ROM. I myself have been running this 2.1.1 build without any problems so far. Actually, it is a great improvement over the stock ROM; battery life has improved, and screen transition effects are performed much smoother. The phone is initially very fast, but after installation I’ve only seen an improvement – no hiccups.

Here are a few screenshots of my homescreen; the stock launcher still comes standard with this release, but I can’t seem to veer away from ADW EX. Now it may sound silly, but the main reason I rooted my device is to install a tiny 1% battery mod patch found within the battery icon in the status bar. The only way to install this mod is to have a deodexed ROM so that’s the main reason I went ahead with the ARHD installation. This build still has the original kernel included in the official Android 4.0.2 update devices were just updated with, so don’t expect to undervolt/overclock your device quite yet (on the LTE version at least). For the GSM model however, Paul O’Brien has you covered.

I’ll periodically update with significant improvements that arise within the Galaxy Nexus LTE development community, so stick with us. Installing this ROM was relatively simple, and the instructions were very straightforward. Just download the ROM to your device via MTP, run his “Super Wipe” script from within ClockworkMod, and the install the ROM. I advise running “Super Wipe” even if coming from his 2.1.0 version – I experienced glitchy behavior when I didn’t. The development for Verizon’s Galaxy Nexus has really started strong, and hopefully the trend continues.
[via XDA Developers]

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Light Flow – LED Control: The perfect app for Galaxy Nexus notifications

Just like the Nexus One before it Google has been kind enough to add something I think all smartphones should have to the Galaxy Nexus — and that is the LED notification light. Something so simple, small, and cheap makes a world of difference. Especially for people like me getting notifications and work emails all day long. For those wanting to get the most out of this awesome feature we have just the app for you.

For many Nexus fans you might remember Trackball Alert Pro for the Nexus One. Light Flow – LED Control is a very similar application that will fully unlock the power of the multi-color LED on the Galaxy Nexus. With more settings, options, and colors than you’ll ever need it even works in succession. Yes that means if you have two notifications it will flash one, then move to the next and so on so you’ll never miss a beat — or color.

From duration, color, flash rate, sound this app has all the settings you’ll need. It supports third party apps like Handcent or email clients other than Gmail. On first boot it will recognize all capable applications and list them neatly so you can manage each one. It even offers status lights for low battery, charging levels, low signal, no signal and many many more. This truly is a all-in-one solution.
This is nothing new and Light Flow has been on the Android Market for a long time, I’ve used the free version briefly on my old myTouch 4G. This app reaches its full potential with the Nexus while bringing the Galaxy Nexus to the same level. The screenshots below show you a good glimpse of what to expect but don’t take my word for it — try the free version now, then buy the full paid app here when you see how awesome this truly is.
This is more than just a blue for text, red for Gmail, white for missed call type of application. You can set special patterns, ringtones, flashes and more for not just apps but also certain email addresses or contacts — Giving you the option to have a pink flashing light every time that special lady in your life shoots you a text message. Check out the screenshots below then head to the market link and download this today. Feel free to let us know how it goes in the comment section below. The app has plenty of settings but don’t get overwhelmed — it’s actually quite easy. Enjoy!
Market Link — Light Flow
Reminder: Disregard the warning that this application can collect user data and passwords. Just like 3rd party keyboards this is just an automated warning, and LED Control doesn’t have internet access anyways.
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Galaxy Nexus Ninja Unboxing turns into 8-bit video game

I have one word for this and that is: Awesome! If you remember, Google released similar videos for both the Google Nexus One and the Samsung Nexus S (both linked to below) and my personal favorite was the Nexus S. This new Ninja Unboxing part 3 might just take the cake — until part 4 of course. In the past they used stop motion animation for these awesome videos but this brings things to an entirely new level. Play the Galaxy Nexus video game today!

Yesterday Google teased everyone that something was coming for Android fans today and while many were starting to speculate on an update for the Nexus One to Ice Cream Sandwich (dreaming) or maybe some sort of Nexus Tablet instead we have this video/game. While it’s nothing major I’m still quite excited and after I finish sharing the news with all my fellow followers and readers I’ll be sure to get back into my ninja suit and beat the game myself.

Yes, the unboxing turns into an 8bit Atari-style video game that is completely awesome. Basically you need to head down to YouTube immediately and play it by clicking here. Make sure to come back to Android Community though and see all of our coverage of the Galaxy Nexus and past unboxing videos from the timeline neatly laid out below.
Enjoy Ninjas!

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Galaxy Nexus Experiencing Signal Problems? Verizon Looking into a Fix

We’ve received more than a few tips that users are experiencing signal issues with the Samsung Galaxy Nexus. I can’t personally verify the claims — I have yet to take my Nexus outside of a 4G zone – but based on a recent tweet from Verizon’s support account it does appear that something isn’t quite right. Users are reporting familiar sounding 4G issues, such as poor handling of the switch between 3G and 4G mode (toggling airplane mode tends to fix this) and lower-than-expected reception strength. Verizon says it is investigating the problem and developing a software update to address the problems, but a release timeframe is unknown. Our best guess is to expect any signal-enhancing tweaks to come bundled as part of the Android 4.0.3 update planned to arrive on Nexus handsets in the coming weeks.
[via DroidLife]

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